Fazlul Haque Amini


Fazlul Hoque Amini was an Islamic scholar and politician from Bangladesh. He served as an MP in the Parliament of Bangladesh from 2002 to 2007. He was an expert in the fields of Islamic jurisprudence, hadith and tasawwuf. He also held a number of positions on the boards of qaumi madrasahs. He was also the principal of Jamia Qurania Arabia Lalbagh in Lalbagh, Dhaka, one of the largest Deobandi Islamic schools of Bangladesh.

Career

Amini was the chairman of a faction of Islami Oikya Jote, and also a leader of Tehreek-e-Khatme Nabuwwat. He was a former component of the BNP-led four-party alliance.

Views

He spoke out against the Women Development Policy of 2011 and the Education Policy of 2012 formulated by the Awami League government after coming to power in January 2009, saying the proposed legal reforms were anti-Islamic. According to Rashidul Hasan, writing in The Daily Star in April 2011:
Islamic scholars and academics interviewed by The Daily Star disagreed with Amini, saying there was nothing anti-Islamic about the policies. They said Amini was misinterpreting the Quran out of ignorance, or was deliberately twisting its words for political gain.
At a gathering on 14 July 2011, Amini, speaking about the 15th Amendment to the Constitution, which among other things restored the principle of secularism and freedom of religion, said, "People will throw the constitution, from where the name of Allah has been dropped, into dustbin ". He was sued for sedition for this remark, although he argued that it was a figure of speech. On 26 September 2011, the High Court ordered him to surrender to authorities immediately. He spent the remainder of his life under what he termed "house arrest", his movements confined by police to his home and the IOJ party office in Lalbagh Thana, Dhaka.
Amini's madrasa is now used as the Dhaka coordination office of Hefazat a Islam Bangladesh

WikiLeaks cable

A WikiLeaks cable describing a conversation of Amini with Chammas, the US ambassador in Dhaka of 14 December 2004, reveals many unknown thoughts of the IOJ leader.
Chammas wrote to Washington in the summary: "At a chance encounter with polcouns, IOJ chairman Fazlul Haq Amini denounced Jamaat Islami as power hungry, criticized the BDG on several fronts, opposed the proposed USD 2 billion Tata investment in Bangladesh, indicated the Awami League has offered him money to quit the ruling alliance, and described in general terms his vision for Bangladesh as a truly Islamic state. How, he asked, could IOJ could improve its image in the U.S. and why is the US Government anti-madrassah?"

Death

He died in Dhaka on 12 December 2012 at 12:20.
Following his death, his son, Abul Hasnat Amini, became actively involved with Hefazat-e-Islam.
Hefazat-e-Islam, led by Amini's teacher Ahmad Shafi, called for a 13-point movement against the government's policies and the demand of a blasphemy law.